Moneen (sometimes stylised as .moneen.) is a Canadian indie rock band from Brampton, Ontario.

Moneen
Moneen in 2006
Moneen in 2006
Background information
OriginBrampton, Ontario, Canada
Genres
Years active2000-present (hiatus 2013-2016)
LabelsDine Alone, Vagrant, Smallman
MembersKenny Bridges
Chris 'The Hippy' Hughes
Erik Hughes
Peter Krpan
Past membersSteve Nunnaro
Mark Bowser
Chris Slorach
Websitemoneenlovesyou.com

History

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Moneen formed in 1999 after the dissolution of another band, called Perfectly Normal.[1] The founding members were singer/guitarist Kenny Bridges, bassist Mark Bowser, drummer Peter Krpan and singer/guitarist Chris Hughes.

The band recorded their first EP Smaller Chairs for the Early 1900s in Kenny's basement. They then re-released it on Smallman Records with their second album "The Theory of Harmonial Value", the band's next release was Are We Really Happy with Who We Are Right Now in 2003. The album appeared on the !earshot National Top 50 chart in August, 2003.[2]

Bowser was replaced by Chris Slorach (Nu Chris), who left the band after the release of The Theory of Harmonial Value.[3] Erik Hughes (who played bass for the band on their first Canadian tour) later became the permanent bass player for the band.

In 2003 the band's lineup was Bridges, Krpan, and Chris and Erik Hughes. That year they performed in Austin.[4]

Moneen later signed to Vagrant Records.[5] Smallman Records still distributes their albums in Canada. In 2005 they released a split EP with friends Alexisonfire on Dine Alone Records, on which each band covered two of the other's songs, plus one original song.

In 2005, director Alex Liu followed the band through the recording process for The Red Tree, filming a documentary entitled The Start to This May Be the End to Another. The Red Tree was released on April 11, 2006, on CD and vinyl. The vinyl release of The Red Tree was limited to 300 copies. The band joined the 2006 Warped Tour to promote the album.[6] The documentary was released as part of The Moneen DVD: It All Started with a Red Stripe on May 13, 2008.[7] The DVD had been nominated for a Juno Award for Music DVD of The Year.[8]

In March 2008, Moneen parted ways with their drummer Peter Krpan, who decided to start a solo project named One Grand Canyon; the band recruited drummer Steve Nunnaro as a permanent replacement.

Moneen began recording their fourth studio album The World I Want to Leave Behind in December 2008; it was released September 15, 2009 with Dine Alone Records.[9] They released it on CD and vinyl. The vinyl release had a bonus track called "Dark & Ugly".[10] The band went on tour in the United States to support the album, including a stop in Los Angeles at the Troubadour.[11]

In 2010, Peter Krpan re-joined Moneen as the permanent drummer. The band opened for several dates on Alexisonfire's farewell tour in December 2012,[12] however the band had performed very little throughout 2012 and after 2013 were in hiatus. Krpan, along with Chris and Eric Hughes, formed a new band in 2013 named Seas, signed a deal with Black Box Music,[13] and went out on tour. Bridges joined a band called Cunter, worked as the guitar tech for The Sheepdogs, toured with Say Anything on guitar, and released an EP in August 2015 "Love and Hate".

In 2016, Moneen performed in Mississauga, Ontario at Cuchulainn's Irish Pub.[14]

In 2017 the band played a four-date tour leading up to the 10th anniversary of The Red Tree, held at Lee's Palace in Toronto.[15]

In January 2019, the band played three shows at the Phoenix Concert Theatre in Toronto to celebrate the 15th anniversary of Are We Really Happy with Who We Are Right Now.[16] In April 2019, Alexisonfire announced that Moneen would be supporting then for one date in July 2019, describing Moneen as the "Siegfried to Alexisonfire’s Roy".[17]

In May 2023, Moneen announced an upcoming Canadian tour for the fall of 2023. The eight show tour is a 20th anniversary tour for Are We Really Happy With Who We Are Right Now and will be supported by Sparta who will be celebrating the 20th anniversary of their album Wiretap Scars. [18]

Members

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Current members

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Former members

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  • Mark Bowser: bass guitar (2000)
  • (Nu) Chris Slorach: bass guitar (2000–2001)
  • Steve Nunnaro: drums, percussion (2008–2010)

Discography

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Studio albums

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DVDs

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Music videos

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  • "No Better Way To Show Your Love Than A Set Of Broken Legs" (2002)
  • "Tonight, I'm Gone..." (2002)
  • "Life's Just Too Short Little Ndugu" (2003)
  • "Are We Really Happy with Who We Are Right Now?" (2003) Directed by Jeff Scheven
  • "Start Angry... End Mad" (2004) Directed by Jeff Scheven
  • "Passing Out in America/Accidents Are on Purpose" (2006) Directed by Marc Ricciardelli
  • "If Tragedy's Appealing, Then Disaster's an Addiction" (2006) Directed by Shane Drake
  • "Don't Ever Tell Locke What He Can't Do" (2006) Directed by Matt Bass
  • "Hold That Sound" (2009) Directed by Michael Maxxis

See also

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References

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  1. ^ "Moneen Explore the Intricate Balance Between Harmonic Challenges and Humorous Inclinations In the Modern Age". Exclaim!, By Rob Nay Published Jun 01, 2003
  2. ^ "The National Top 50 For the Week Ending: Tuesday, August 12, 2003". !earshot
  3. ^ "Classic Canadian Emo Bands You Might Have Forgotten About". Aux.tv. 2013-09-13. Archived from the original on 2013-09-22. Retrieved 2020-04-01.
  4. ^ "A Conversation With Moneen". RockZone, by Veronica Hutchings, July 20, 2003
  5. ^ "Billboard Picks: Moneen". Billboard. Nielsen Business Media, Inc. 5 July 2003. p. 30. ISSN 0006-2510.
  6. ^ "Moneen Clutch Nostalgia by the 'Nads and Revive 'The Red Tree' For Its Tenth Anniversary ". NOisey, by Cam Lindsay, Dec 29 2016
  7. ^ "Moneen to release "It All Started with a Red Stripe" DVD". Punknews.org. 25 March 2008. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  8. ^ Persaud, Travis "Conversations: Moneen's Kenny Bridges" at "Exclaim!" October 2009.
  9. ^ "Kenny Bridges (Moneen)". Punk News, interview by Ben Conoley, 2009.
  10. ^ "Acoustic Moneen Show @ CTO « well damn!". Welldamn.wordpress.com. 2008-12-20. Retrieved 2012-07-31.
  11. ^ "Interview: Moneen - 22/11/2009. Alter the Press, Jon Ableson
  12. ^ "Alexisonfire / Moneen Sound Academy, Toronto, ON, December 26". Exclaim!, By Melody Lau, Dec 27, 2012
  13. ^ "Moneen Members Announce Debut Album as Seas, Sign with Black Box and Share New Song". Exclaim. 2013-08-22. Retrieved 2014-07-21.
  14. ^ "Moneen Cuchulainn's Irish Pub, Mississauga ON, November 1". Exclaim!, By Bradley Zorgdrager, Nov 02, 2016
  15. ^ "Moneen announces The Red Tree anniversary release show". dinealonerecords.com. 2 November 2016. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  16. ^ "The best Toronto concerts to catch in January 2019". NOW. Toronto. 28 December 2018. Retrieved 2019-01-11.
  17. ^ "Alexisonfire Announce Very Special Support Acts For Headline Shows". gigsandtours.com. 16 April 2019. Retrieved 13 June 2019.
  18. ^ "Moneen Take 'Are We Really Happy with Who We Are Right Now?' on 20th Anniversary Canadian Tour". exclaim.ca. 31 May 2023. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
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